PDI-P and PPP coalesce in C. Java gubernatorial race
PDI-P and PPP coalesce in C. Java gubernatorial race
Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Semarang
Central Java councilors from the Indonesian Democratic Party
of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and the United Development (PPP)
factions have nominated provincial council head and PDI
Perjuangan faction member Mardijo for the Central Java
gubernatorial election this year.
The two factions nominated Hisyam Alie, the head of the PPP
faction at the council, as Mardijo's running mate for deputy
governor.
"We, from the United Development faction, formed a coalition
with the PDI Perjuangan faction to nominate Mardijo and Hisyam
Alie for the upcoming governorship race," Achmad Thoyfoer, the
head of the East Java PPP chapter and deputy to council head,
said on Monday.
The move could earn the pair at least 49 votes from among the
100 members at the East Java council. The PDI-P faction has 39
members on the council and the PPP faction 10.
Both nominees must each secure at least 51 percent of the
council's vote in order to win the election.
"We will respect anybody who wants to join the gubernatorial
race for East Java. It might be that there are many candidates
who are better than Mardijo and Hisyam Alie, but in reality we
must see whether the others have supporters or not," Achmad said.
He explained that PPP hoped its coalition with PDI Perjuangan
would boost its chances of having one of its member win the
election.
"By nominating Hisyam Alie as the deputy governor alongside
Mardijo, this marks a political move by PPP to secure a post."
He added the nomination was an initiative from the council,
and that thus far the PPP executive board had made no comment.
"So far, there hasn't been any intervention from the executive
board regarding the nomination," he said.
Under the autonomy laws, Jakarta has delegated the appointment
of governors and regents down to the provinces and regencies.
But governorships in the three provinces of Java have normally
been reserved to candidates with military backgrounds, and were
appointed by the party's executive boards.
The East Java PDI Perjuangan faction has yet to disclose
whether it had obtained the executive board's support for
nominating Mardijo.
Despite the autonomy laws, PDI Perjuangan Chairwoman Megawati
Soekarnoputri, Indonesia's President, has often pressured party
members to accept candidates she named.
Among those that were sidelined due to her interference were
gubernatorial candidates in Lampung, West Java and Jakarta.